The director of the Oscar-winning "Lord of the Rings" trilogy previewed 10 minutes of assorted footage of the prequel Tuesday at the CinemaCon convention for theater owners in Las Vegas.

"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey," is being filmed in New Zealand using more frames per second than the Hollywood standard. Jackson said in a video introduction that using 48 frames per second produces a smoother image.

In the previewed scenes, blades of grass, facial lines and soaring mountains all appeared luminous and pronounced. Ian McKellen, Cate Blanchett and Orlando Bloom are among the returning cast members from the trilogy.

"The Hobbit" is the first chapter in Jackson's two-part adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy classic. The 3-D movie is slated to be released in December.